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As the demographics of our workplaces shift, so must the way we approach training. However, many Canadian organizations continue to rely on the same learning and development methods that have served them for decades. While these approaches may be familiar, they are no longer effective. Younger workers, shaped by their digital upbringing, bring new learning preferences and expectations. Traditional, one-size-fits-all training often fails to engage them, and more importantly, when training doesn’t meet their specific needs, it can lead to performance gaps and disengagement. The reality is that employees who are accustomed to fast, flexible and interactive environments now expect the same in their professional development.
Bottom line: for training to be effective today, especially for younger employees, it needs to be customized, relevant and timely. This crucial shift in how organizations should approach learning and development is driven by three fundamental truths.
Truth No. 1: Most performance challenges arise from a lack of knowledge or skills
Most performance challenges stem from employees not having the right skills or knowledge. To improve performance, it’s essential to identify these gaps and address them with targeted, engaging training. For younger workers, accustomed to dynamic and digital learning environments, traditional methods that don’t align with their preferences are likely to result in disengagement.
Truth No. 2: For learning to be effective, it must equip employees with the necessary tools in the right environment
Younger workers tend to respond best when learning is supported by digital tools in flexible, interactive environments. Providing the right resources and conditions is essential for their engagement and development. When organizations offer flexible learning options that align with younger employees’ tech-savvy and fast-paced lifestyles, they create an environment where these employees can truly thrive.
Truth No. 3: Effective training is customized relevant, and delivered when it is most useful
Younger employees expect training to be tailored to their individual needs and directly applicable to their roles. They’re more likely to engage with content that is interactive, on-demand and relevant to their current work. Without customization and relevance, they may feel disconnected from training programs, perceiving them as outdated or unhelpful. By adapting training to their learning styles, organizations can ensure better retention and improved performance.
Making this shift can seem like a gargantuan effort, but it is entirely possible. Take this situation faced by one of my client organizations. They faced performance challenges with younger employees who were disengaged by traditional classroom training. To address this, they implemented digital assessments to identify knowledge gaps and created personalized learning paths. These paths included on-demand microlearning modules for technical skills, and group training and one-on-one mentorship for soft skills. By aligning the training with employees’ job responsibilities and offering flexible, real-time support, the organization significantly improved both engagement and skill retention. This customized approach not only equipped employees with the right tools, but also ensured the training was relevant and timely.
Here is how you can embrace a blended-learning approach combining flexibility, digital tools and personal interaction to accomplish exactly the same in your organization.
Blended learning for technical skills
- Use e-learning platforms with adaptive learning paths that adjust to each learner’s progress. This way, you can ensure training is personalized to address individual knowledge gaps and learning speed.
- Break down complex subjects into bite-sized micro-learning modules that are accessible on-demand. This will also make it easier for your employees to fit learning into their fast-paced work environments.
- Provide real-time support through a help line or chat feature. When employees encounter a challenge, they can immediately seek guidance and continue learning without frustration.
Blended learning for soft skills
- Spread out soft-skills training over multiple sessions with clear action items for participants to implement between meetings. This will reinforce learning, ensure accountability and promote long-term growth.
- Incorporate structured journaling exercises between sessions to encourage reflection. This will help employees internalize key lessons and identify areas for personal development.
- Pair employees with a leadership mentor for individualized, on-demand learning. This mentorship allows workers to tackle specific challenges as they arise and then receive personalized guidance, making the training more practical and directly applicable to their role. Choosing the right mentor is important, so seek an experienced mentor external to your organization if you don’t have the appropriate internal resources.
When you tailor the learning experience to suit individual employees, you will ensure that it is engaging, effective and impactful. Leaders, take a look at your current learning and development strategy and consider how you can incorporate a blended-learning approach to combine flexibility, digital tools and personal interaction. When you invest in training that aligns with how your people learn, you will enhance performance and build a more engaged and future-ready workforce.
Merge Gupta-Sunderji is a speaker, author, mentor to senior leaders and the chief executive officer of the leadership development consultancy Turning Managers Into Leaders.